Manufacture of cartridge-shells and other receptacles from paper-pulp



(No Model.) 4 G. M. PETERS.

MANUFACTURE OF CARTRIDGE SHELLS AND OTHER RECEPTAGLESTROM PAPER PULP.

7 No. 321,848. Patented July 7,1885.

1.7V 'VJSJVTOR Z W l i/Z31, 14 JMWQAQMJ; I

" NITED STATES G. MOORE PETERS, OF XENIA, OHIO.

MANUFACTURE OF CARTRIDGE-SHELLS AND OTHER RECEPTACLES FROM PAPER-PULP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 321,848, dated July 7,1885.

Application filed December 29, 1884. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, G. MOORE PETERS, a citizen of the United States,residing at Xenia, in the county of Greene and State of Ohio, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in the Manufacture ofCartridge- Shells and other Receptacles from Paper-Pulp, of which thefollowing is a specification, reference being had therein to theaccompanying drawings.

My invention relates to the manufacture of cartridge-shells (and otherreceptacles, such as boxes and similar articles) from pulp, such aspaper or wood.

The device and process of manufacture here presented are improvements onthe patent granted to me April 29, 1884, No. 297,712.

I will now proceed to describe my invention, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a vertical section of themold, shellformer, piston, and vent-former; Fig. 2, a side elevation,partly in section, of the pulpreservoir, distributing pipe and shaft,and mold; Fig. 3, a side view of the distributingpipe and shaft, thecars for supporting the molds, and the revolving drums or disks forsupporting the cars; Fig. 4:, an end view of one of the supporting drumsor disks, partly broken to show the pulp-conductor and car in section;and Fig. 5, a section of the moldfor forming paper boxes and otherarticles.

In my former patent, before referred to, the tube being limited incapacity, it requires several fillings to furnish sufficient pulp toform the shell. Moreover, the base being downward, it is difiicultsometimes to turn the pulp upward along the sides of the mold. Thesedefects I remedy by the devices here presented.

By referring to Fig. 1 it will be seen that the mold Ahas the base a atthe top. I make the opposite end, A, separate from the body of the mold,so that it can be readily detached when required. It may, however, bemade integral with the body A, if desired. Flanges A at top and bottomreceive the bolts B, so that the parts can be securely fastenedtogether. The base end of the mold is provided with a beveled shoulder,a, on its inner surface, by means of which the beveled flange or seat ofthe shell is formed, the depth from a a being sufficient to hold pulpenough to allow a firm base to be made. From the beveled shoulder a toend piece, A the interior of the mold is of gradually-decreasingdiameter, thus causing the outer surface of the shell to taper slightly,(about one-fiftieth of an inch, more or less,) so that the shell may beeasily withdrawn from the mold and gun. The mold is provided with aformer, O O, also made tapering as it rises, and is either cut square ormade rounding at the upper end. This former O G has a shoulder, c, whichrests on the plate A Thelower portion, O, of the former, which is madenarrower than the upper portion, O, passes through said plate A andextends downward a suitable distance below it, and while it fits closelyin the opening made in plate A it is capable of being moved up and down.The object of this is to raise the former and so lift the shell out ofthe mold, thus avoiding the necessity of taking the mold apart everytime a shell is to be removed. There may be a nut or pin placed on thelower end of the former O to prevent its being drawn out when a shell isremoved.

It is necessary that provision be made for the escape of moisture fromthe pulp as it is being filled into the mold and compressed. Toaccomplish this purpose, I may make small holes or openings 6 cin theplate A", the former 0 being solid. These holes may be large enough forthe water to pass through, yet too small for the escape of the pulp. Iprefer, however, to make the formerO O hollow from near the bottom tothe top, with one or more cavities, the upper portion being providedwith a series of minute perforations, 0, leading into the tubularformer, or one or more longitudinal slots, d, leading thereto, as shownin Fig. 1. The lower end of the former Omay be made tubular, or simplyhave several vertical grooves for the escape of the water. The openings6 in the plate A can then be omitted. The piston D compresses the pulp,as in my former patent. In this instance, however, a central projection,f, is made on the lower end of the piston, for forming the seat for theprimer. A conical projecting point, y, we tends below this and forms theopening in the base of the shell for the flash of the primer to reachthe powder.

Heretofore it has been found difficult to ICO pack the pulp in thenarrow opening of the mold at the bottom and to drain it sufficientlyfast. To accomplish the desired ends, I now use centrifugal force infilling the molds, as illustrated in Fig. 2.

The prepared pulp is placed in a reservoir, E, and kept agitated and ofuniform consistency by means of a suitable revolving paddlewheel nearthe bottom of the tank, operated by the shaft S. The tank may also beprovided with a steam-coil to keep the pulp hot. The mold A is attachedto a shaft, G, in any suitable manner, said shaft being actuated by aband-pulley, II. Through the center of the shaft, runninghorizontally,is a circular opening, which midway turns outward, as at F,and communicates with the opening of the mold A. The opening in theshaft is connected with the reservoir E by means of the pipe F, providedwith a stop-cock, 71, or sliding plate placed inside the reservoir overthe mouth of the pipe. There may also be connections through pipe F, bymeans of branching pipes, with reservoirs of oil, steam, and watertheoil to be used for lubricating the molds, the water for cleaning thepassage-ways of any accumulation of pulp, the steam for heating themolds, cutting out any obstructions not affected by the water, and foraiding in pressing down the pulp, if needed, all operated in connectionwith the centrifugal device and the filling of the mold.

\Vhen it is desired to fill the mold with pulp, the shaft G (andtherefore the mold which is secured to it) is set revolving with greatrapidity. The cock h is now turned, and the pulp,

which is about the consistency of cream, begins to flow through the pipeF and opening in the shaft, whence it is hurled by the centrifugalaction with great force into the mold. This action causes .it to firmlypack itself and rapidly drain as the mold is filled. The reservoir Emaybe attached toafloat resting on the pulp, by means of which it caneasily be determined how much of the pulp should be let out each time tofill the mold properly. This explains the method of filling a singlemold.

In order, however, that such cartridge-shells or other receptacles bemade economically, they must be made in quantities. In practice it is mypurpose to arrange hundreds of these molds side by side in a single setof plates, like plate A, said plates being mounted on wheels M and movedon a tramway, and thus fill and press all the molds at once.

The machine for filling the molds in quantityis shown in Figs. 3 and l.M is the frame or carriage containing the molds, mounted on the wheelsH, which move on the tracks N O. The shaft G (which communicates withthe pulp, oil, steam, and water reservoirs, as before set forth) ishollow, and has an internal opening running nearly its entire length.Oii one side of the shaft isalong narrow slot communicating with thecentral opening, which, when the machine is in operation, allows a thinsheet of the liquid pulp to flow out. A

conductor, G, conveys the pulp from the shaft G to the molds, thereceiving-mouth of this conductor being placed opposite the slot in theshaft, and is firmly bolted to the shaft. The revolving frame, as shownin Fig. 4, turns from right to left, and it will be seen that theconductor G, as it leaves the shaft, curves backward and delivers itscontents first on the forward edge of the mold-plates, and from therespreads over and fills the molds. This is in accordance with the naturalcourse of the stream of pulp. As it is thrown out by the centrifugalforce it is at the same time drawn backward by its own force of inertia.The conductor Gterminates in a shallow inverted pan, K, covering theentire surface of the mold-plates. It should be provided with rubberedges and the carriage M brought firmly against it to prevent leakingwhen the filling is going on. This pan may be further provided withadjustable openings in the top, sides, or end for the escape of hot air,steam, or water. The part of the track N is detached from the main track0 and held by the lifting-frame K, connected with the drum-heads 1.\Vhen the carriage M is first rolled on the track N,it is on a levelwith the track 0; but by means of the screw attachment L, operated bythe crank L, the liftingframe is drawn up until the carriage is firmlypressed against the conductor G. After the molds are filled the carriageis lowered and rolled away to the press.

It is not necessary here to describe the press, except to say that thepress-plate, which is operated by a suitable screw or cam, is providedwith as many pistons like D as there are molds, the carriages holdingthe molds exactly in line with the downward movement of the pistonpress-plate, so that the pistons will eX- actly enter their respectivemolds. A jacket of sheet iron or tin surrounds the filling device, so asto catch the flying water.

In a large manufactory there will be a large number of these carriagesjust described, containing molds moved back and forth by a wire cable,to which they may be attached or detached, as occasion requires, bymeans of suitable clutches.

The general and completing operation is as follows: The molds havingbeen filled,they are moved under the press, where the base of the shellis con'ipressed and solidified and the flange and the primer-seatformed. They are then run into a heating-oven, where they re main untilthoroughly dried. They are next removed and brought over a plateoperated from beneath by aserew. This plate is brought up against theformers O, lifting them all at once and carrying with them the shells.If any trimming is necessary, it may be done while the shells are on theuplifted formers. The shells may 110w be removed by hand or by a deviceclutching them all at one time. If

the shells contract so closely about the formers O that it is difficultto remove them, the formers may be cooled and contracted previous to theremoval by making the plate that lifts the formers a shallow pan filledwith water. The cold water brought into contact with the lower ends ofthe formers will chill them and cause them to contract without affectingthe rest of the mold. When being filled, the molds may be lubricated,and they, as well as the pulp, may be hot or cold, as may be deemedproper. The pulp may contain a proper proportion of glue or size, suchas used in papiermach.

It is apparent from the foregoing that this same process will apply toany sized receptacle, such as boxes, 8m. course be circular,rectangular, or polygonal in form, and the former C be made tocorrespond in shape with the mold.

While I have described particularly the manufacture of cartridge-shells,it is at once evident that any kind of receptacle can be made from thepulp without departing from the spirit of the invention as shown in theseveral figures and in the description of the operation.

In the formation of boxes and like articles not requiring great densitythe pressing may be dispensed with, the pulp being sufficiently packedby the centrifugal force employed.

In Fig. 5 the mold for the boxes contains all the essential featuresshown in Fig. 1. The draining-slots are preferably placed in the cornersin this form.

By means of suitable gearing connected with the carriages or with theplates or supports for the molds, I may give said molds a motion oftranslation at the same time with the centrifugal motion. This tends tobring the fiber of the pulp into a binding condition, thus making thebody of the shell tough, yet thin.

Instead of placing the molds in a separate drying-receptacle, I mayforce hot air into them by means of the filling-pipes, and thus dry themwithout removal. After this operation superheated paraffine may beforced into the shells, and said shells more thoroughly renderedwater-proof.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is-

1. In the manufacture of cartridge-shells from paper-pulp, a moldprovided with a base having drainage openings, substantially as and forthe purpose set forth.

2. In the manufacture of cartridgeshells from paper-pulp, a moldprovided with an internal flange for forming the base of the shell, theinterior of the mold tapering from said flange to the opposite end ofthe mold, there by causing the shell to taper on its outer surface,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In the manufacture of cartridge-shells The mold may of frompaper-pulp, the combination, with a mold having a tapering opening, of aformer, C, also made tapering, substantially as and for the purpose setforth.

4. In the manufacture of articles from paper-pulp, the combination, witha mold, of a tubular former provided with openings therein to carry offthe water from the pulp, substantially as set forth.

5. In the manufacture of articles from paper-pulp, a mold, one end ofwhich is open for the reception of the pulp, and a compressingpiston,the opposite end or base having an opening therein to receive a devicefor forming the article to be molded, substantially as set forth.

6. In the manufacture of articles from paper-pulp, a mold, one end ofwhich is open for the reception of the pulp, the opposite end having anopening therein for the reception of a former, and openings for thedrainage of the mold, substantially as set forth.

7. In the manufacture of cartridge-shells, the combination,with the moldand former, of a compressing-piston provided with means for forming theseat for the primer, and an opening in the base of the shell,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

8. In the manufacture of articles from paper-pulp, the combinationof apulp and oil reservoir, a hollow shaft and means for turning it, theshaft being connected with said reservoirs,and one or more molds securedto the shaft and turning with it, said molds communicating with theopening in the shaft, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

9. In the manufacture of cartridge-shells and other articles frompaper-pulp, the combination of a hollow shaft suitably actuated andconnected with the pulp-reservoir, a revolving frame provided withdrum-heads secured to said shaft, one or more carriages containing moldssecured to the frame or drumheads, a conductor for conveying the pulpfrom the shaft to the molds, means, as described, for preventing leakageof said molds, and means for raising and lowering the mold-carriage,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

10. In the manufacture of cartridge-shells from paper-pulp, thecombination of one or more molds and apparatus for filling and drainingthem by centrifugal force, a piston for forming the base of the shelland primer-seat, and means for drying and removing the shells from themolds, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signaturein presence of two witnesses.

G. MOORE PETERS. Witnesses:

W. R. MOGERVEY, C. B. GownY.

